Michigan unemployment rate improves to 8.3% in April, as workforce grows by 3,000

3:00 PM, May 16, 2012

Steven Holeman, 18, of Detroit stands along Vernor Avenue in southwest Detroit on Friday, March 30, 2012. Holeman is a recent high school graduate and is unemployed, despite efforts to find a job. Michigan unemployment numbers improved in April by two-tenths of a percentage, moving to 8.3%. / BRIAN KAUFMAN/Detroit Free Press

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Michigan’s unemployment rate kept moving in the right direction in April, dropping two-tenths of a percentage point to 8.3%.

Data released this afternoon by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget showed that the state’s workforce rose slightly by a net increase of 3,000 workers.

Meanwhile, a monthly survey of employers showed that the number of jobs at major employers rose slightly in April by 5,000 to just under 4 million. April job additions were led by an increase of 6,000 jobs in professional and business services

“The first four months of 2012 have been positive for Michigan’s labor market,” said Rick Waclawek, director of the Bureau of Labor Market Information and Strategic Initiatives. “Early 2012 has been marked by monthly employment gains and stable labor force levels.”

The state’s improving rate means that Michigan’s jobless level is now just slightly above the nation’s unemployment rate of 8.1% in April.

Michigan’s April 2012 jobless rate was the lowest for the state since the 8.2% rate reported for July 2008.

Meanwhile, April marked the fourth consecutive month that Michigan’s total workforce – a measure of those working or looking for work – rose. That means the jobless rate is coming down not because discouraged people are dropping out of the workforce but that the employment gains are real.